Types of Molasses

• Molasses is generally a by-product of the sugar production process, although "fancy molasses" is squeezed from ripe sugar cane before sugar-making begins. First molasses, extracted with the first boiling of the cane, contains about 65 percent sucrose, is light in color and sweet in taste, making it useful for pouring on pancakes or spreading like honey on bread. First molasses is also called light, Barbados or sweet molasses. Second molasses, known as cooking or dark molasses, is slightly less sweet at 60 percent sucrose and is the molasses used to flavor gingerbread, baked beans and other dishes where a dark-sweet flavor is wanted. Third molasses, or blackstrap, has a distinctly mineral taste and bitterness related to its only 55 percent sucrose. Taken as an old-fashioned human tonic, blackstrap is typically used in animal foods.

Sulfured vs. Unsulfured

• Sulfur dioxide lightens the color of molasses and deters mold. It also enhances extraction of sweet juice from young, not-quite-ripe cane. Don't use sulfured molasses when baking bread because the sulfur dioxide inhibits the growth of yeast. Sulfur makes molasses taste less sweet, and the health impacts of sulfur consumption aren't fully understood. Unsulfured molasses is sweeter and can be refrigerated to deter spoilage.

Molasses for Breakfast

• Fancy or light molasses can substitute for maple syrup or honey at the table. Top hot cereal with a spoonful or pour it over pancakes or waffles. For variety, add cinnamon to light or dark molasses and warm it before pouring. For a particularly hearty old-fashioned breakfast, start with buckwheat, whole wheat or gingerbread pancakes and melt butter in dark molasses for topping. For a lightly sweet spread for toast, mix light molasses half-and-half with butter or peanut butter.

Molasses for Dinner

• Home barbecue chefs know that light or dark molasses adds depth of flavor as well as sweetness to barbecue sauce. In the days when mincemeat contained meat, molasses was a frequent sweetener. Consider adding molasses to other ingredients such as fruit juice or vinegar when glazing full-flavored meats including game, pork and lamb. Sweeten glazes or sauces for strong-flavored fish such as salmon. Fancy or light molasses gives a fruity sweetness that balances well with assertive meat flavors, while dark molasses can add more complexity of flavor to a sauce than even brown sugar. Mixed with mustard, soy, red-wine vinegar or garlic, molasses enhances the brown caramelized coating that makes meat delicious. A butter-brown-sugar-vanilla-molasses glaze creates roasted winter vegetables delicious results.

Molasses for Dessert

• Many dessert recipes call for the warm flavoring of brown, rather than white, sugar. Since molasses is a byproduct of creating white sugar, you can reverse the process by adding one to two tablespoons of molasses to a cup of white sugar when there's no brown sugar in your baking cupboard. Christmas gingerbread may be the main use of molasses for dessert in your house, but light or dark molasses makes a tasty topping for baked apples or pears, plain cake or even ice cream. Long relied on as an ingredient in winter desserts such as plum pudding and fruit cake, molasses can put a new spin on buttercream frosting. Spread on chocolate cupcakes and topped with candied pecans, molasses buttercream creates an all-season dessert. Blend fancy or light molasses with cream cheese for a new and unexpected version of carrot-cake frosting.